How do you transcribe a meeting on a Mac?

Choose between live text and a finished transcript. For text while the meeting happens, use Live Captions, which Apple provides on Mac. For a complete, searchable transcript, record the audio and transcribe the file afterward. Whichever you choose, get consent from everyone on the call first, because the rules depend on where each person is.

The two routes solve different problems. Live Captions helps you follow along. A file transcript gives you something to search, quote and share, but it needs a recording, and it needs a check for errors afterward.

Record the meeting, then transcribe the file for a searchable transcript

Apple says the Voice Memos app on a Mac can recognize and transcribe the speech in audio recordings ¹. Apple says that with macOS Sequoia and a Mac with Apple silicon, speech in those recordings can be recognized and transcribed to text ². If your Mac is older or runs an older macOS, check Apple's requirements before you plan around this route.

Apple's Voice Memos help describes recording and transcribing audio recordings. It does not say whether the app records the sound from a video call, so test that before a real meeting. Record a two-minute test call with a colleague, then play it back to check that both voices come through.

For a more flexible route, use a file-based Whisper app. Our guide to the best dictation apps for Mac describes the groups. Those apps transcribe a file you have already recorded, and some can label the speakers. WhisperX, an open-source project that runs Whisper-based recognition, adds word-level timestamps and speaker diarization to its output ³. Speaker diarization is the step that splits a transcript by speaker, and it is a separate step from the words themselves.

Live Captions shows the meeting as text, on Apple silicon only

Apple says Live Captions on Mac is available only on Mac computers with Apple silicon, and not in every language, country or region ⁴. Check both before you rely on it.

Live Captions can caption the audio coming out of your Mac, which is what you hear from a meeting app, or the sound picked up by the microphone, which suits an in-person conversation. You switch between the two ⁵. For a call, choose the Mac's audio output so the other participants are captioned.

Apple also says the accuracy of Live Captions may vary and should not be relied on in high-risk or emergency situations ⁶. A meeting where a missed word has a cost, such as a medical or legal call, needs a recording and a careful review, not captions alone. We did not confirm whether Live Captions saves a transcript for you, so check that before you rely on it.

Get consent before you record, because the rules differ

Recording a conversation can be illegal without consent, and the consent rule depends on where you and the other participants are. California's Penal Code 632 punishes a person who intentionally records a confidential communication without the consent of all parties ⁷. Delaware's interception statute, by contrast, allows interception when the person is a party to the communication, or when one of the parties has given prior consent ⁸.

Those two rules are the two common models. Under an all-party consent rule, everyone on the call must agree. Under a one-party consent rule, one party's consent can be enough. If participants are in different places, you may need to follow the stricter rule. This page is general information, not legal advice, so ask your employer or a lawyer about your situation.

The practical step is simple. Say at the start that you are recording and ask everyone to say they agree. Then the consent is on the recording, and nobody can say they were not told.

Speaker labels need an extra step after transcription

A plain transcript may not say who said each line. Speaker labels come from speaker diarization, a separate step that WhisperX adds to Whisper-based output ³. Check whether your app offers it, and test it on a short recording with two people who talk in turns. Overlapping speech, where people talk at once, is harder to label, so check those parts by hand.

What to do: a checklist for your next meeting

1. Decide what you need. Use Live Captions for following along, or a recording for a transcript you will keep.
2. Check your Mac. Live Captions needs Apple silicon, and Voice Memos transcription needs macOS Sequoia on Apple silicon.
3. Test first. Record a two-minute test with a colleague, and confirm that both voices are captured.
4. Get consent. Know where each participant is, follow the stricter rule if they differ, and say at the start that you are recording.
5. Review the transcript. Check names, numbers and action items against the recording before you share it.
6. Store it carefully. Delete the recording when your policy says to, and keep the transcript only as long as you need it.

If you only need a transcript of an audio file, not a live meeting, our free audio to text page transcribes files in your browser. For a meeting that your video app already records, check that app's own transcript settings first. Our question on whether Zoom can transcribe without recording covers that route, and the question on free meeting transcription compares the free options. For the terms used here, see the glossary entry on live captions and the glossary entry on Apple silicon. For the whole subject, see our overview of dictation on Mac.